Automobile-headlight.



.i yedcertain new and usefull Improvements `in f WVILLIAM W. HOLLAND ANDGEORGE H. SNYDER, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND AUTOMOBILE-HEADLIGHT.

lioness.

Taal( 'uf/1.0111 'if muy concern.'

le 1t known that we., lViLLrAlu. ll. .llen- .Lxxu and Gnomnc ll. Ssonn,citizens of the United States of America. residing at Baltimore, in theState of B'Iaryhmd, have invent- Automohilli-Headlights, of Vwhich thefol- 'lowing is a specification. L. t

The dillieultyY and danger to. which the drivers `of automobiles and thepublic in general are suhjert due to the glare of the head-lights ofthese c vehicles, is wellknown. ln the cities, vthe highways areilluminated andthe use of powerful lights is limited or forbidden, buton the country roads, `it `is necessary to illuminate the -path ofthevehicle `hy means of head-lights, and since fthe introduction `ofimproved'automo- -bile lighting systems, `fed by an elficient and.

powerful generator, lights of excessive bril- 'liancy have been used, sothat frequently a driver is lhlinded by the glare of thel lights of.apassing car and loses control of his machine causing collisions andditching. Pedestrians and draft animals are also confused by the glarewith disastrous results.

Numerous dirnmers havcbeendcvised, one typeoffwhlch lscontrolled by thedriver to Vturn down the light and reduce its. intensity `temporarilyWhile other machines are `passing. .Anotherftype is inthe form of ascreen f having,

course "at .they same speed under the reduced.

covering `the fop part of the reflector to screen the eyes' of thedrivers of. other vehiclesA and at .the Vsame'tinieto allow sufficientlightto be'thrown onthe road. .Also, lenses or supposed to have, a.'dimming effect are offered for sale. These expedients are all-moreorfless imperfect. .If the lights larel .temporarily turned downl inpassing other machines thedriver ofthe machine provided'with thislrindof a dimmer must slow down to stop as vhis eyes are used to a .muchvmore intense illumination'and when his lights are-suddenly dimmed, heisnot able to see sufficiently `well to continue v:his

illumination. The other` .dimmers, while Lthey are intendedtolkeep-theglare outof 'the e'yes Without reducing... thev `illuminatingeffect-'in thepath `of.thevevhiclewin fact, are not largely successfulin either intent. l, y The l.

commonest.'dimmersare those in which the top part ofthelightfisscreened. Aconsidrable portionV of the difficulty however,

`comes not from the rays from the top of the Specification of LettersPatent.

Patentedll'au. 4l, 1916.

lApplicaticm filed August 16, 1915. Serial No. 45,769. v

of the light without loss of illuminating.

effect. To accomplish this, .we provide a vizoror protecting shieldatthe top having an internal reflecting surface, reflecting meansbeneathl the source of light to :turn upward both the directraysfronrthe source of illumination which are projected downward, andthe rays reflected from the internal reflecting surface of the vizor'iBoth sets of rays from the vizor ,arefthen projected forward by contactWitlra third reflecting surface.

In the accompanying drawings, `We have illustrated our invention.

Figure 1* is a .diagrammatic vieW illustrating the arrangementof .thereflectors.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section through lthe reflector on the axis. Fig. 3isa front elevation of a. `head-,light to which the invention hasbeenapplied, the lg'lasshe'ing broken away to illustrate the reflector.

The device consists of asource of lightl, with reflecting surfaces which,may he in a single reflector 2, having 2in `front of and beneath thesource ofillumination a sulo` stantially horizontal upwardly disposedre` .fleeting surface 3, a vizor 4 extending' down yalmost to the 'levelof the sourcev of illumination, with a 4curved`internalreflectingsursolface :5 adapted to project therays .oflight from the sourceof .1i ghtand the ,adjacent `portions of the reflector-,on to the.rfaflecting`sur- .face3, and a. reflecting surface 6,.preferably almost "flat, withits line of intersectionzin` a verticalmplane and yinclined so .as ,toproject the rays fromthe reflecting.surface'.3v forwerden tov-theroadwell infrontl of the dished so that it iisg-adapted to turfnup'ward.to the v.portionlof thefreflector 1iallthefrays coming frOmthe.vicinity ofthef source .of

,y 4light. .At the rear above "8, nearfthe. level of the sourceilluminatiomfthe surfaceofthe rays striking this portionA of .the`reflector from the isource Tof illumination. are. turned vdirectlyforvvard,giving` aber of light withv vehicle. Beneath fthe i source ofliglimithe .portioncf-.the .reflector at' 7 iscunved .or

substantially parallel rays projected forward on to the road surface.

The diagram in Fig. 1 illustrates the theory of operation and the pathof the rays. reflected directly from the surface 5 of the vizor to thebottom reflector 3 and then up to the'relecting surface from which theyare projected fori'ard.

The theory of the invention is that the light coming` from the centralportion of the part immediately above the center of the usual reflectorbeing projected forward and slightly downward into the road, is .notharmful, so we make this portion of our rclector of substantially theusuall form. Ordinai-ily however, a considerable portion of the lightwhich radiates downward from the source of illumination is wasted. Partof it Strikes the lower edge of the reflector and is turned upward to bediffused. through the atmosphere.A These rays are those which mostfrequently produce the harmful effect on the eyes of'passing.. driversand pedestrians. Also, a large portion of the lightr coming directlyfrom the source of illumination is turned downward into the roadimmediately in front of the vehicle and out of the field of observationof the driver so that it is utterly wasted. To prevent the waste of theupwardly directed rays and to keep them from contact with the eyes ofdrivers of passing vehicles and the like, we have provided the vizor orshield 4 with the internal reflecting surface 5. This is so placed andformed as to deflect the rays striking it from the source(if-illumination l and from the reflecting surface 7 directly on thereflecting surface 3 by means of which they are projected against thereflecting surface 6 and again projected forward in the form of a beamof substantiall y parallel rays striking the road directly in front ofthe vehicle.- Also, the rays coming,l directly from the source ofillumination to the reflecting` .surface 3 are in a large part turnedupward to the reflecting surface (i and projected forward by the actionof' this part of the reflector. i

' An important saving' is effected by turn'- ing the downward rays whichstrike the reflector V7 upward against the internal reflect ingr surface5 of the vizor. 'lhen the rays whichy are now absolutely useless, if nothal'n'iful, are turned forward into the path of the vehiclewheri'x it isin full view of the driver.

1We have thus described our invention specifically and in detail inorder that iis nature and operation may be clearly understood; however,the specific terms herein are used in their descriptive rather than intheir limiting sense and the scope of the invention is defined in theclaims.

lVe claiml. In an automobile head-light, a source of illlumination, a'vizor with an internal reflecting surface, an upwardly disposed re-Hector in front of the source of illumination, and a forwardly anddownwardly disposed inclined reflector above the upwardly disposedreflector.

2. ln an'automobile head-light, a source of' illumination, a vizor tointercept the upwardly and forwardly directed rays, the vizor having aninternal reflecting` surface to project the Yrays downward, an upwardlydisposed reflectingl surface to receive the rays from the vizor andproject them upward and backward, and an inclined reflector in the pathof the rays from the latter-named reflector to receive the rays fromthat reflector and project them forward.

3. In an automobile head-light, source of illumination, a vizor tointercept the upwardly and forwardly directed rays, the vizor havingf auinternal reflecting surface to project the rays downward, an upwardlydisposed reflecting surface to Areceive 'the rays from the vizor andproject them upward and backward, an inclined reflector in the path ofthe rays from the latternamed reflector to receive the rays from thatreflector and project them forward, and a curved reflecting' surface inthe rear of the source of illumination 'to vproject the rays directlyforward.

4. In an automobile head-light, a source of illumination, a vizor tointercept the upwardlyV and forwardly directed rays, the vizor having'an internal reflecting surface to project the rays downward, an upwardlydisposed reflectingv surface to receive the rays from the viz( andproject them upward and backward, an inclined reflector in the path ofthe rays from the latter-named reflector to receive the rays from thatreflector and project them forward, and a curved rellecting' surfaceextending' beneath and slightly in the rear of the source of ligrhtshaped to project-the rays received thereby on to the reflecting surfaceof the vizorrcausing them to follow substantially the same path as thatfollowed by the direct rays which fall upon the vii/lor.

ln testimony whereof we afliX our signatures in presence of twowitnesses.

VILLA M W. HOLLAND. GEORGE H. SNYDER.

Vitnesse.'

L. J. LUnnnnUsnN, JAS. lnssAGNo.

